


And Now, This is your Normal

by GettheSalt



Series: About Holidays [8]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Adoption, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Domestic, Father's Day, M/M, Not Canon Compliant
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-01
Updated: 2016-07-01
Packaged: 2018-07-19 12:28:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7361509
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GettheSalt/pseuds/GettheSalt
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Father's Day. A day Leo never celebrated, growing up. A day Grant never felt excited about. And for the first time, for the rest of their lives, a day they're ready to spend together, with their own little family.</p>
            </blockquote>





	And Now, This is your Normal

It had been a damn rare occurrence, before Brody, for Leo to wake up before Grant. He loved his sleep, and he had no shame about that. There was a lot to love about a comfortable bed and recharging your batteries after a long day. Since Brody had come along, though, the playing field had been evened. Even if it wasn't Grant's night to sit up with the baby, he woke every time Brody did, and he woke when Leo got back into bed after settling him. That wasn't all that different from what happened on Grant's nights with the baby, but the difference was that Leo gained an extra tten to thirty minutes of sleep that Grant lost out on those nights, and vis versa.

And last night had definitely been Grant's night. Brody had been relatively quiet, which was good. They had been worried for a bit, after the team had been to visit on Memorial Day. Jemma had made a comment about cholic, and while Brody wasn't exhibiting anything that would make them think he might actually _be_ cholicy, Leo worried.

It was part of being a parent, he supposed.

In any case, Brody had slept through _most_ of the night, but the time that Grant had needed to get up with him had resulted in Leo being the first of the two of them to wake up. Grant was still laying on his front in the bed, face turned on the pillow, hair mussed and bed covers draped half way down his back. One arm was flopped – because Leo couldn't use the word draped – over Leo's stomach. The other, he suspected, was tucked under the pillow.

And Leo wasn't the only one who had beaten Grant to consciousness.

“Good morning.” Leo whispered. It was damn near possible that Brody could hear what he'd actually said, but Leo could see his little feet up in the air, tiny hands reaching for them. He was awake and amusing himself in the morning light. He was becoming more and more able to entertain himself, already, which was nothing short of amazing. And nothing short of the exact formula to melt Leo's heart, this early in the morning.

With another glance at Grant, to make sure he was still sleeping, Leo extracted himself, careful not to jostle his husband too much. That was a near impossible task; Grant tended to wake easily. Today, however, he seemed content to stay asleep, which worked out well for Leo, slipping from their bed and padding over to the baby's crib.

Brody was laid on his back, and had finally gotten ahold of one of his feet, just barely, tips of his tiny fingers hooked over the ends of his tiny toes. It slipped through his grasp as he looked up and saw Leo, and a big, dopey smile spread across his pudgy face. There was little in the world that felt as good as that look; knowing that his son recognized him, and that seeing him made his son smile. It was something that filled Leo with a warm, happy feeling, shrugging off the last of his grogginess.

“Come on, buddy.” Leo whispered, reaching into the crib and lifting Brody out. He snuggled up against Leo's chest the first chance he got, giving a soft little sigh, his little head on Leo's shoulder. Content to have entertained himself, but happy to see his father. That was good. They had gotten pretty lucky. Looking over Grant's way, and noticing him shifting, Leo left the room quickly, beelining for the nursery. Scout, curled at the top of the stairs, lifted his head, and then got to his feet and followed, his tail wagging.

“Good morning, Scout.” Leo said softly, while he laid Brody down on the change table. The baby smiled up at him, and made a burbling noise, kicking his legs while Scout crowded against Leo's side and tipped his nose up, sniffing. “I know.” Leo said. “I think he did, too.”

Opening one of the drawers on the change table, Leo set to work getting Brody out of his onesie – printed with puppy dog faces, a gift from Uncle Antoine – and changing him out of his diaper into a fresh, clean one. A quick check of the wall clock, and a second of calculation, and Leo nodded. “Not hungry yet, hm? Daddy said he fed you when you woke up this morning. See what happens when you're difficult for dinner?” He poked Brody's soft belly, and the baby giggled. “You get hungry at five in the morning! Instead of later, monkey!”

It was hard not to grin, and laugh, when Brody did. He could get fussy and moody around dinner time, or just before bed, and it did usually lead to him needing to be fed in the early hours of the morning. It wasn't something that they counted as a hardship, but hopefully fussiness about dinner didn't translate all the way through to toddler age, when Brody wouldn't just be turning up his nose at a bottle, but at vegetables, and who knew what else.

With the baby changed, and left in only his diaper – for now, until they dressed him later – Leo picked him up and carried him back to their bedroom, Scout following along, all the way around the bed to Leo's side, where he curled up on the floor with a content huff. Once they were up and about in the morning, the dog had no qualms about inviting himself to their room, and they weren't bothered by it either. They weren't even, really, bothered by Scout being there overnight, but the dog had grown up on certain rules, and even if he had attached to Brody over the last few weeks, he wasn't going to sleep in the master bedroom overnight. He'd stay by the stairs, his usual spot, close enough to know if something was going on with the baby.

Grant had shifted while Leo was gone, from his front to his back, closer to the edge of the bed on his side. It had created a perfect space for Leo to set Brody down, and then lay down beside him, on his side, watching while Brody became transfixed by his own toes, again.

“You know what today is, Brody?” Leo asked, quietly, glancing up from their baby to his husband. Grant wasn't sleeping quite as deeply anymore, and Leo felt bad about the prospect of waking him up. Given that it was a Sunday, though, Leo would have no issues shooing him off to bed to nap, if he lagged, later in the day. “Today is Father's Day. Our very first one, because of you.”

Brody was watching him with a bemused expression. While Leo spoke, he sucked his lower lip into his mouth, making his chubby cheeks even more prominent.

“You've made us very, very happy, little guy.” Leo continued, reaching to gently pinch one of Brody's toes. The action took his eyes off Leo's face, and back to his feet, which he seemed to have forgotten for the moment, and now reached for, exuberantly, again. “More than I even expected.”

Another glance at Grant, confirming that he still looked peaceful and asleep, and Leo continued. “Your daddy didn't think he would be able to do this. He was scared. He didn't think he was dad material.” Brody seemed torn between examining his own toes, and watching while Leo spoke. Smiling, Leo continued. “Can't blame him, obviously. It's a very big job, being a dad. Even I was a bit nervous about myself. But he didn't need to be scared, did he? Did he?” Leo tickled Brody's tummy, and the baby kicked and laughed. “No, he's a good daddy, and you love him very much, don't you?”

If Grant had heard and made heads or tails of what Leo had been saying to the baby, he didn't give any sign of it. In fact, the way he woke up, groggy, slow, like he was coming out of a very, very deep slumber, made Leo sure that he hadn't picked up on much. While Leo watched him, Grant blinked, and looked down at Brody, who was now transfixed, staring up at him since he'd started moving. A smile, genuine and warm, spread across Grant's face, and he rolled over to kiss Brody's forehead, a move that got another shriek of laughter and bout of kicked legs, before Grant leaned back up. Leo met his lips in a chaste kiss, melting a little, himself.

“Morning, you two.” Grant said, shifting back to give them both space again. Brody was sucking his lower lip, watching while Grant settled on his side of the bed. He was awake, now, which made him very, very interesting.

“Good morning,” Leo said, watching, and laughing, while Grant pulled faces at Brody. “Happy Father's day.”

Those words tore Grant's eyes away from Brody, meeting Leo's, with a thousand words unspoken, but obvious in the way he looked at him. They were fathers, something they hadn't been at this time last year, and despite all of Grant's fears, and Leo's valid worries, they were doing a pretty damn good job, overall. There had been little validity in the fears that Grant had had, and he'd learned that now. The worries Leo had carried had turned out to be much less dire than they had seemed, when there had been no baby in their life.

Grant settled, pushing a hand through his mussed hair, and letting out a breath. “Father's day...”

While Leo watched, a smile spread across his face, turning into a grin. He looked so happy, so at peace with the date, and the title. “Happy Father's Day right back, babe.”

Leo smiled, and then looked down at Brody quickly, their conversation interrupted by an indignant sound. With both of their attentions back on him, Brody seemed content to shove his fingers in his mouth, looking from one to the other. Grant reached down, shaking his head, still smiling, and tugged his fingers loose. “Remember what happened last time? When you almost made yourself throw up?” He tapped Brody's nose with his finger. “What do you want to do today?”

That question was, obviously, addressed to Leo. As much as it would please him to be able to say he had a genius son, whose abilities outshone even his own, he didn't think Brody would be responding to that question, and he doubted Grant expected him to.

They had the whole day to themselves, to do whatever they would like. It was easy to tell, by the sun coming through the gaps in their curtains, that it was nice out. It would be criminal if they didn't go outside. It had been a while since they had taken Scout down to the beach. It might be nice for them to pack up and head to the water, in the afternoon. Spend some time out, and soak up the sun, and show Brody the ocean for the first time. It wasn't something that he'd gotten to see, yet. That would be a good place to start.

While Leo thought about the idea of an afternoon at the coast, getting early dinner there at one of the boardwalk restaurants, sitting on the boardwalk to eat, Scout sitting with them, his stomach rumbled, answering the very first order of business.

The sound startled Brody from his fascination with Grant's fingers, and he looked at Leo's stomach with an expression nearing offense, while Grant laughed.

“So, should we start with breakfast?” He asked, moving to get out of bed. Scout popped up on Leo's side of the bed and Grant added, “Morning, boy. I take it you wanna go out?”

Scout tail wagged and he hurried around the side of the bed, ending up on Grant's side, where he was rewarded with a hearty rub of his ears.

“I'll take that as a yes.” Leo said, moving to get out of bed himself, bringing the baby with him. “And we can get you some breakfast too, hm? Sound good?”

Brody tapped his face gently. Answer enough.

Once they were in the kitchen, and Scout was let outside into the bright sunshine, Leo handed Brody to Grant. “Take him, sit. Feed him, and I will take care of breakfast for us. I want to, so don't argue.” He nodded approvingly, a bit smug, when Grant snorted and said 'yessir', taking Brody's reheated bottle from the kitchen and moving to sit on the couch. Brody took the bottle with no arguments, unlike last night. If Leo lingered a few seconds, taking in the picture of his husband and son, he couldn't be blamed. “So, I was thinking. It's really nice today, and we should just take it easy, but... Might be nice to go to the coast, yeah?”

Grant looked up, on the couch, while Leo moved around, gathering eggs and toast and potatoes and tomatoes. “We've never taken him.”

“Exactly what I was thinking. We can head over, walk the beach, get lunch... go for dinner. Scout would like it too, I bet. He hasn't been since the last time we went, long before Brody was born.”

Grant was nodding, on the couch, clearly very happy with that idea. “Yeah. I love that. Would be a good way to spend the day. We'll have to keep to the easier trails, if we're going to walk the coast.” That made sense, as they'd have Brody in his baby carrier. “But, I love that idea. It's a plan.”

“Glad you agree.” Leo said, proud that he'd thought of something that they hadn't done in a while, that would be good for all of them, including the dog.

Leo let Scout back inside while he cooked, and the dog helped himself to his own breakfast, before joining Grant and Brody in the living room, standing guard while Brody ate, and Grant and Leo talked about the best way to get to the coast, and what order would be best to do things in. After Brody had finished his bottle, Grant took a blanket, and the baby, outside onto the deck, leaving the sliding door open so Scout could pass freely. The smell of bacon was wafting around the kitchen while Leo glanced outside, and caught sight of Grant, with Brody propped on his shoulder, gently tapping his back, burping him, while he watched Scout run quick, mad laps around the yard. It was a scene that tugged hard on Leo's heart. Something like that was not an image that he had, back on the Bus, thought he'd ever see Grant in. It wasn't even an image that he'd thought to entertain when they'd been dating and living in New York City. Now, for a second, it seemed like something out of a dream.

Something that had become their actual life. Grant had gone from being an international spy and assassin, to being a loving, caring husband and father, a dog owner, holding down a training job with the FBI, and still making time with his family, every day, every week.

Leo had gone from creating and designing weapons and devices for that international spy agency, to designing and creating for NASA, and, currently, being a stay at home dad, something few people had thought him capable of ever doing, some years ago.

They had come such a long way, and the future was spread out in front of them. They could go anywhere they wanted, anywhere at all, from here.

While Leo was lost in those thoughts, Scout trotted back into the house, licking his hand, and reminding him that this wasn't just idle thought, idle fantasy. This was their life now. He'd been lucky enough for it. Grant had been lucky enough for it.

“Food's ready!”

Grant came back inside, wadding up the blanket he'd used to burp Brody, and setting it to the side, while he put the baby into his living room bassinet, with his favourite toy – a monkey with a rattle in it, that his Aunt Skye had brought – and then settled in at the table.

“This looks _so_ good, and I'm starving.”

“Dig in.” Leo said, in response, not waiting, himself, before he was tearing into the food. Breakfast was the one meal he knew he didn't need to consult any cookbook or online recipe on. He had this meal down pat, and Grant made no secret of how much he loved Leo's breakfasts.

“Another thing we should do today.” Grant said, as they ate. “Is look at baby clothes. He's getting bigger, fast. I know we bought ahead, but...”

“But he's growing quick, and he's going to grow out of the bigger stuff we got, soon.” Leo agreed, passing a piece of toast crust to Scout. He looked up and met Grant's flat stare with a guilty smile. “We could do that on the way to the coast, yeah? That outdoor outlet mall is on the way. They allow dogs.”

“Exactly what I was thinking.” Grant said, with a smile. “The outlet mall part, not the part where we feed Scout from the table.”

“If you didn't look, you could pretend you never saw it.”

“Uh huh.”

After breakfast, it was time for both of them to shower. Or, more pointedly, it was time for Leo to head upstairs to shower, while Grant cleaned up their breakfast dishes. Little things like that had changed, since Brody had come along. They hadn't showered together _a lot_ before they had become fathers, but on a Sunday like this, Leo could have bet on Grant slipping into the shower with him. The shower would have taken longer than necessary, but it would have been sweeter than showering alone, particularly the parts where Grant let Leo pull him down into kisses while the jet of water broke over his back and sprayed them both.

Instead, he showered alone, sent up while Grant insisted on doing the breakfast clean up himself. It was something that Leo missed, yes, but it wasn't so terrible to have lost. In light of everything they'd gained, he was fine with going a while without sharing showers.

When he emerged from the bathroom, clean, dressed, and feeling even more awake, he found Grant and Brody in the room, on their bed, Grant making Brody shriek with laughter while he blew a raspberry on his exposed belly. Leo grinned, watching them, and moved to the closet, pulling out the day pack they'd be taking with them to the coast. They'd need to pack the diaper bag, as well, and the cooler bag that would fit inside that, with Brody's bottles, but that wouldn't take long. The last few weeks had made them experts in preparing for taking the baby out anywhere. At the sound of the closet door opening, Grant looked up and grinned.

“All clean?”

“All clean.” Leo said, setting the pack down and grinning at them both. “You're up.”

Grant got out of the bed, but not before he pulled their pillows from the head, placing them around Brody to create a barrier. “I'll be right back. Are you...?”

“I'll pack us a bag for the trip.” Leo answered his unspoken question. “You just worry about getting naked and wet.”

Grant laughed, softly, and leaned down to kiss him. It wasn't like the kiss they'd shared earlier that morning. It was longer, and deeper, and when Grant pulled away, Leo felt like becoming a warm puddle was an inevitable reality. “I'll see you two in a few minutes.” He said, kissing Leo's forehead, before taking the clothes he'd already set out for himself from the foot of the bed. Leo couldn't help but notice that he'd picked out an outfit for Brody, as well; next to Grant's clothes, was a little elastic waist jeans, a t-shirt with a plane on it, and a little red sweater, alongside tiny socks and a fresh diaper. “Happy Father's Day, Leo.”

“Happy Father's Day, Grant.” Leo replied, soft, searching his face, and loving what he found their. Happiness, confidence, and a distinct lack of irrational fear. It was what he'd hoped Grant would come to feel, when their dream became reality. It was what he, himself, felt, now that Brody was in their lives.

 


End file.
